April 9, 2025 • 9 mins
CHECKING IN WITH CINDY ROMERO Cindy Romero and her husband were the couple who reached out to Danielle Jurinksy for help when a Venezuelan gang took over the apartment complex they had lived in for years without incident. She just got back from testifying before Congress and I'm chatting with her today at 2:30 about all of it. Follow her on X here.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Joining me now is a woman who kind of shot
to fame in a way she did not need, want
or desire, but it took her to the halls of
Congress last week. Cindy Romero, Welcome to the show. First
of all, thank you so much so, Cindy. I told
my listeners earlier, you are the person who videotaped a
(00:20):
Venezuelan gang. We now know it to be Venezuelan gang members,
not suspected anymore, busting in the door of a neighbor's house,
fully locked and loaded, and that video has truly changed
the direction I think of Aurora, Colorado, and I wanted
to ask you. I know that I've talked to Danielle
Drinsky about your story. How did you get to the
(00:43):
point where you went from just living in those apartments
happily and peacefully to videotaping people busting down your neighbor's.
Speaker 2 (00:50):
Door over the summer. It started out as a lot
of party and a lot of people around that we
didn't know that didn't live in our building, or we
didn't know they lived in our building. And then you know,
the rumors off, you know, doors being kicked in. We'd
leave our building and see actual doors, not on the hinges,
(01:13):
and we would actually see sheeps separating different living spaces
in these little apartments, so we knew something wasn't right then,
But when we seen the guns, then we started to
get scared and prepare ourselves and put up cameras.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
No, Siddy, did you have issues with the apartment management
before the gangs moved in? I mean, was it an
okay place to live before that happened.
Speaker 2 (01:38):
Oh? Yeah, I really enjoyed living there. Actually, I didn't
want to move and that's how this all started. It
started because I didn't want to move, and so I
was I was providing evidence and recordings to the police
because I wanted them to do something about the crime.
I didn't want to have to move out.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
Were you threatened by gang members? What were your actual interactions,
if any, with the men that were sort of taking over.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
Well, there were always people standing outside by our cars
with guns. There were always people leaning on our cars
out in the parking lot with guns. They would walk
up and down the stairs. We would have to walk
past them because they'd sit on their stairs with the guns,
so we would have to wait for them to get
out of our way or you know, sometimes they would
just stay there and we would have to, you know,
(02:30):
like squeeze by them. These people they were taking over
the property and by intimidation or threatening other of our neighbors,
they were pushing slowly everybody out, and we were just
the ones who held on the longest in our building.
Speaker 1 (02:47):
Well, I got to tell you, I think that you
are probably responsible for the shift from leadership in Aurora,
whether it is the mayor, whether it is the police
chief at thee. They've got a new police chief now.
But that video really helped people understand that this was
not a figment of Danielle Durinsky's imagination. That made it real.
(03:09):
What has happened since that video came out and you
guys were forced to move out of the apartments. What
has happened to your life since then?
Speaker 2 (03:19):
Well, since then, I've had the opportunity to do many
interviews and get the word out. And since then, I've
spoke at a President Trump's rally before he was elected.
I have been able to go testify at Congress and
in front of a House Judicial committee so I could
explain to them what really happened in Aurora. Because you know,
(03:41):
mainstream media for the most part pushback and tried to
downplay it. And now that so many people have been arrested,
and you know, nobody still has apologized to Danielle for Danielle,
for you know, Colleen her a liar, insinuating that it
was just part of her imagination, and it was I
felt like it was my response ability to get that
on public record that this really did happen, no matter
(04:04):
how they try to the misstate or downplay or gaslight
as this really happened in Aurora and it should never
happen in the US period.
Speaker 1 (04:14):
Amen to that. So tell me about testifying in front
of Congress.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
It was an amazing experience to go to Thera Capital
for the first time. It was my first trip to DC.
I got to meant meet a lot of people there
that were supportive and didn't try to call me a liar.
And I was actually approached off camera several times by
people on the other side of the aisle, and it
(04:40):
all started out and the same way that it's been.
You know, we're very sorry that this happened to you
and your family, but my question is, well, then why
did you allow it to happen? Right? Why did you
invite these people here, and why did you allow it
to continue after if it was reported for many, many months.
Speaker 1 (04:59):
So do you feel like anything was accomplished there other
than being able to tell your story and share. Do
you feel like you move the needle enough or at
all that there's going to be any kind of significant
actions so this doesn't happen again.
Speaker 2 (05:14):
I already see changes in my community. I think most
people will agree that they're already starting to see changes
in their community. Less crime, less bullets flying in the
middle of the night, let's stolen cars out on the streets,
let's expire tags everywhere, less people running up to your
(05:34):
cars at intersections. I think everybody is starting to notice
the change. I feel a little bit safer. One day,
I'd like to be able to move back to Aurora.
Speaker 1 (05:45):
Well, I said this yesterday, Cindy. I'm super I'm keen
on Aurora right now because the new police chief seems
to be doing the right things in the right way,
that is making the community safer without exacerbating any sort of,
you know, community negative feelings about the police. You have
a city council that is very invested in making crime
(06:07):
again in Aurora. So I said yesterday, I'm Keen on Aurora.
I think they're moving in the right direction. And I
think the fact that you were so open and came
out and told your story has allowed people like Chief
Todd Chamberlain to say, yeah, we got a gang problem,
but we're here to fix it, which is completely different
than the response you initially got. When you would call
police and say, there are guys standing next to my
(06:28):
car with guns? What would they say?
Speaker 2 (06:33):
What? Most of the time I would get, you know,
we're busy. I'm sorry, we're you know, responding to other crimes.
And that was my biggest pushback. The second biggest pushback
was I wouldn't get a response till hours later, right
and by the time they did come by, the people
had wandered off. Or it's not illegal for them to
have guns in Colorado. I got that a lot. And
(06:56):
although I knew that these people were here in the
United safety legal, the police didn't necessarily know that, right,
So it's hard for them to take the crime seriously
if they weren't the ones experience in it. So I
would say, you know, you guys, come over here and
hang out here for a little while. If nothing else,
it would just deter the crime. A little bit more,
(07:18):
I would think, but you know, they're already so short staffed.
And you know, I support Aurora Police Department at every
single bit that I can. And it's disappointing that this
happened the way it did, but I'm so glad that
it is propelling change.
Speaker 1 (07:35):
I agree. Cindy Romero. Is such a pleasure to talk
to you. Thank you for being brave, you know, because
it's one thing to say I need help and I
need to I need people to understand what's going on,
But it's quite another to then put yourself out there
and do interviews about it and go testify in front
of Congress that that is a next level brave because
(07:57):
a lot of people would just be like, great, I'm
out of that situation. I'm done. So thank you for
not leaving and turning your back on the situation and
making it better for the people that are still in
Aurora and hopefully maybe someday will be there again soon.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
Well, thank you so much. And you know, Colorado is
my home and I hope everyone is working towards the
Colorado for tomorrow and not just today.
Speaker 1 (08:22):
I want to ask you one more thing I just
thought about because I watched part of your testimony. Lives
of TikTok picked up part of your congressional testimony, and
I went back and found the rest of it. You
started out by saying, I am a lifelong Democrat. Why
did you do that?
Speaker 2 (08:36):
Because I wanted them to know that. It's not that
I don't see where they're coming from. I felt really
betrayed by the way they treated me, by the way
they turned their backs and the gas lighted the entire community.
The community would have been better prepared, they would have
bought cameras, they would have been more aware of what
was going on around them, and maybe it could have
saved a few people from being victims of these criminals
(09:00):
if they would have known about the problem at the
beginning when I first started reporting it, rather than, you know,
months later, when it became, you know, a worldwide video.
Speaker 1 (09:11):
I think that's kind of sad that you feel like
you have to give yourself some street cred by saying, Hey,
I'm a lifelong Democrat, you should listen to me too.
I just that's not not sad that for you. I'm
just saying it's sad that that's where we are in
our political discourse.
Speaker 2 (09:25):
You know what I mean. And they're so disappointing and
and they don't realize that they're they're gaslighting actually changed
votes cycle, it changed minds, and there their platform isn't working.
Back to the drawing board on that one because what
they're doing is not good for communities here in Colorado.
Speaker 1 (09:47):
Amen to that, Cindy Ramero, thanks so much for your
time today.
Speaker 2 (09:51):
Thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (09:52):
All Right, have a great day.
Joining me now is a woman who kind of shot
to fame in a way she did not need, want
or desire, but it took her to the halls of
Congress last week. Cindy Romero, Welcome to the show. First
of all, thank you so much so, Cindy. I told
my listeners earlier, you are the person who videotaped a
(00:20):
Venezuelan gang. We now know it to be Venezuelan gang members,
not suspected anymore, busting in the door of a neighbor's house,
fully locked and loaded, and that video has truly changed
the direction I think of Aurora, Colorado, and I wanted
to ask you. I know that I've talked to Danielle
Drinsky about your story. How did you get to the
(00:43):
point where you went from just living in those apartments
happily and peacefully to videotaping people busting down your neighbor's.
Speaker 2 (00:50):
Door over the summer. It started out as a lot
of party and a lot of people around that we
didn't know that didn't live in our building, or we
didn't know they lived in our building. And then you know,
the rumors off, you know, doors being kicked in. We'd
leave our building and see actual doors, not on the hinges,
(01:13):
and we would actually see sheeps separating different living spaces
in these little apartments, so we knew something wasn't right then,
But when we seen the guns, then we started to
get scared and prepare ourselves and put up cameras.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
No, Siddy, did you have issues with the apartment management
before the gangs moved in? I mean, was it an
okay place to live before that happened.
Speaker 2 (01:38):
Oh? Yeah, I really enjoyed living there. Actually, I didn't
want to move and that's how this all started. It
started because I didn't want to move, and so I
was I was providing evidence and recordings to the police
because I wanted them to do something about the crime.
I didn't want to have to move out.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
Were you threatened by gang members? What were your actual interactions,
if any, with the men that were sort of taking over.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
Well, there were always people standing outside by our cars
with guns. There were always people leaning on our cars
out in the parking lot with guns. They would walk
up and down the stairs. We would have to walk
past them because they'd sit on their stairs with the guns,
so we would have to wait for them to get
out of our way or you know, sometimes they would
just stay there and we would have to, you know,
(02:30):
like squeeze by them. These people they were taking over
the property and by intimidation or threatening other of our neighbors,
they were pushing slowly everybody out, and we were just
the ones who held on the longest in our building.
Speaker 1 (02:47):
Well, I got to tell you, I think that you
are probably responsible for the shift from leadership in Aurora,
whether it is the mayor, whether it is the police
chief at thee. They've got a new police chief now.
But that video really helped people understand that this was
not a figment of Danielle Durinsky's imagination. That made it real.
(03:09):
What has happened since that video came out and you
guys were forced to move out of the apartments. What
has happened to your life since then?
Speaker 2 (03:19):
Well, since then, I've had the opportunity to do many
interviews and get the word out. And since then, I've
spoke at a President Trump's rally before he was elected.
I have been able to go testify at Congress and
in front of a House Judicial committee so I could
explain to them what really happened in Aurora. Because you know,
(03:41):
mainstream media for the most part pushback and tried to
downplay it. And now that so many people have been arrested,
and you know, nobody still has apologized to Danielle for Danielle,
for you know, Colleen her a liar, insinuating that it
was just part of her imagination, and it was I
felt like it was my response ability to get that
on public record that this really did happen, no matter
(04:04):
how they try to the misstate or downplay or gaslight
as this really happened in Aurora and it should never
happen in the US period.
Speaker 1 (04:14):
Amen to that. So tell me about testifying in front
of Congress.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
It was an amazing experience to go to Thera Capital
for the first time. It was my first trip to DC.
I got to meant meet a lot of people there
that were supportive and didn't try to call me a liar.
And I was actually approached off camera several times by
people on the other side of the aisle, and it
(04:40):
all started out and the same way that it's been.
You know, we're very sorry that this happened to you
and your family, but my question is, well, then why
did you allow it to happen? Right? Why did you
invite these people here, and why did you allow it
to continue after if it was reported for many, many months.
Speaker 1 (04:59):
So do you feel like anything was accomplished there other
than being able to tell your story and share. Do
you feel like you move the needle enough or at
all that there's going to be any kind of significant
actions so this doesn't happen again.
Speaker 2 (05:14):
I already see changes in my community. I think most
people will agree that they're already starting to see changes
in their community. Less crime, less bullets flying in the
middle of the night, let's stolen cars out on the streets,
let's expire tags everywhere, less people running up to your
(05:34):
cars at intersections. I think everybody is starting to notice
the change. I feel a little bit safer. One day,
I'd like to be able to move back to Aurora.
Speaker 1 (05:45):
Well, I said this yesterday, Cindy. I'm super I'm keen
on Aurora right now because the new police chief seems
to be doing the right things in the right way,
that is making the community safer without exacerbating any sort of,
you know, community negative feelings about the police. You have
a city council that is very invested in making crime
(06:07):
again in Aurora. So I said yesterday, I'm Keen on Aurora.
I think they're moving in the right direction. And I
think the fact that you were so open and came
out and told your story has allowed people like Chief
Todd Chamberlain to say, yeah, we got a gang problem,
but we're here to fix it, which is completely different
than the response you initially got. When you would call
police and say, there are guys standing next to my
(06:28):
car with guns? What would they say?
Speaker 2 (06:33):
What? Most of the time I would get, you know,
we're busy. I'm sorry, we're you know, responding to other crimes.
And that was my biggest pushback. The second biggest pushback
was I wouldn't get a response till hours later, right
and by the time they did come by, the people
had wandered off. Or it's not illegal for them to
have guns in Colorado. I got that a lot. And
(06:56):
although I knew that these people were here in the
United safety legal, the police didn't necessarily know that, right,
So it's hard for them to take the crime seriously
if they weren't the ones experience in it. So I
would say, you know, you guys, come over here and
hang out here for a little while. If nothing else,
it would just deter the crime. A little bit more,
(07:18):
I would think, but you know, they're already so short staffed.
And you know, I support Aurora Police Department at every
single bit that I can. And it's disappointing that this
happened the way it did, but I'm so glad that
it is propelling change.
Speaker 1 (07:35):
I agree. Cindy Romero. Is such a pleasure to talk
to you. Thank you for being brave, you know, because
it's one thing to say I need help and I
need to I need people to understand what's going on,
But it's quite another to then put yourself out there
and do interviews about it and go testify in front
of Congress that that is a next level brave because
(07:57):
a lot of people would just be like, great, I'm
out of that situation. I'm done. So thank you for
not leaving and turning your back on the situation and
making it better for the people that are still in
Aurora and hopefully maybe someday will be there again soon.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
Well, thank you so much. And you know, Colorado is
my home and I hope everyone is working towards the
Colorado for tomorrow and not just today.
Speaker 1 (08:22):
I want to ask you one more thing I just
thought about because I watched part of your testimony. Lives
of TikTok picked up part of your congressional testimony, and
I went back and found the rest of it. You
started out by saying, I am a lifelong Democrat. Why
did you do that?
Speaker 2 (08:36):
Because I wanted them to know that. It's not that
I don't see where they're coming from. I felt really
betrayed by the way they treated me, by the way
they turned their backs and the gas lighted the entire community.
The community would have been better prepared, they would have
bought cameras, they would have been more aware of what
was going on around them, and maybe it could have
saved a few people from being victims of these criminals
(09:00):
if they would have known about the problem at the
beginning when I first started reporting it, rather than, you know,
months later, when it became, you know, a worldwide video.
Speaker 1 (09:11):
I think that's kind of sad that you feel like
you have to give yourself some street cred by saying, Hey,
I'm a lifelong Democrat, you should listen to me too.
I just that's not not sad that for you. I'm
just saying it's sad that that's where we are in
our political discourse.
Speaker 2 (09:25):
You know what I mean. And they're so disappointing and
and they don't realize that they're they're gaslighting actually changed
votes cycle, it changed minds, and there their platform isn't working.
Back to the drawing board on that one because what
they're doing is not good for communities here in Colorado.
Speaker 1 (09:47):
Amen to that, Cindy Ramero, thanks so much for your
time today.
Speaker 2 (09:51):
Thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (09:52):
All Right, have a great day.
The Mandy Connell Podcast News
Popular Podcasts
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.
Therapy Gecko
An unlicensed lizard psychologist travels the universe talking to strangers about absolutely nothing. TO CALL THE GECKO: follow me on https://www.twitch.tv/lyleforever to get a notification for when I am taking calls. I am usually live Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays but lately a lot of other times too. I am a gecko.